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Post by Mumsey on Oct 5, 2019 5:21:01 GMT -5
Met this guy yesterday on the deck. Watched him as he found his way to the lemongrass. I spoke to him and he turned his head as if to listen. I didn't know they could turn their head! A big one, at least 4".
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Post by gardendmpls on Oct 5, 2019 20:47:13 GMT -5
The praying mantis is the only insect that can look over its shoulder.
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Post by claude on Oct 16, 2019 20:01:33 GMT -5
I remember hatching a cast of praying mantis...it was found attached to a grass like tall leaf in the spring. The children were so excited and snowfall was predicted so of course we brought it inside...thankfully I placed it in a jar w a screw lid. It hatched after two days inside. There are a bazillion little mantis in that case! Thank goodness it was in the jar. The entire jar was moving...and they began canabalizing each other...2 more days and their numbers dwindled before they were released. Lesson learned.
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Post by Wheelgarden on May 5, 2020 17:19:23 GMT -5
"Murder Hornets" ... aside from the thought of getting stung by the big honkers if they spread further, I'm also concerned with what they might do to honeybee colonies --- they get their moniker due to their decapitation of whole hives.
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Post by gardendmpls on May 7, 2020 12:08:53 GMT -5
This is one of those "We need to find some scary news other than coronavirus" headlines.
First, they are not very aggressive. They will attack if swatted at or their hive is threatened. There was a ground nest of good old American hornets at a previous garden location of mine. They would spot me whenever I came out to the garden and go into full attack mode. Their sting was worse than any other I had experienced. Didn't see too many headlines about them.
Second, there are things beekeepers can do. For one, making the nest entry hole smaller. They are rather large, so if the entrance is narrowed, only a few can get in at a time and then the honey bees counterattack and smother them to death. Second, the beekeeper can trace them back and destroy their nests.
Only other thing I can say is, remember the "killer bees"?
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Post by Wheelgarden on May 7, 2020 13:43:26 GMT -5
gardendmpls , I didn't intend to sound alarmist, but it is a matter of significant concern that may go under the radar while attention is focused elsewhere. ...and speaking of praying mantises, they are known to decapitate the Asian hornet when they encounter them.
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Post by SpringRain🕊️ on May 7, 2020 17:51:32 GMT -5
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Post by SpringRain🕊️ on May 9, 2020 10:25:22 GMT -5
Cold weather and flies: has anyone noticed or found dead flies during the colder days? I've only found a few, generally on an exterior door, perhaps waiting for an unsuspecting me to open the door and let it in so it can escape the chill.
I don't recall ever having seen dead flies outside near the doors though.
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Post by James on May 13, 2020 12:21:03 GMT -5
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Post by tom 🕊 on May 13, 2020 12:31:11 GMT -5
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fly Good article: " Flies are the second largest group of pollinators after the Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and relatives)."
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Post by Wheelgarden on May 30, 2020 21:34:44 GMT -5
Hi, there! We're baaaack!
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Post by gardendmpls on May 30, 2020 23:42:02 GMT -5
At last, the latest on the so called "Murder Hornets", as per The University of California Riverside Entomology Research Museum senior scientist, Doug Yanega, one of the foremost experts in the US on the identification of insects. First, only two were spotted in the US and they are believed to have come together on the same ship. They hibernate in the winter and about one third of those that hibernate survive. It only reproduces at the end of the year and has at most fifty offspring. After the winter, at most 20 would survive. By diligent observation, most of those could be eliminated. None have been sighted this year, although there were a lot of false sightings that turned out to be native insects. Doesn't sound like anything that is going to spread quickly. They have to hibernate so forget about them getting to warmer states.
In countries where they are native, beekeepers put wire mesh around their hives and it keeps them out while letting the bees in and out. They eat bee larvae, not adults, so there is no problem with bees being attacked away from their hives. As far as its sting, it is only a problem if you are allergic, same as with other bees and hornets. On a global scale, it is responsible for much fewer deaths than honeybees and yellowjackets.
Another problem is that, because of all the scare stories, people in Tennessee, far away from the small area near Vancouver where they were found, have been setting traps which are destroying local bees and wasps and other insects. Mr. Yanega's opinion on a bill which sets aside $4,000,000 to fight the hornets is that it's "a terrible idea" because "that's an incredible amount of money that could be used to control legitimate invasive species." He gives palm weevils as an example. "spend it on something constructive and not on something that isn't even established in the US".
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Post by Wheelgarden on May 31, 2020 19:51:00 GMT -5
Here's a new (to me) visitor to the garden, about 3/4 inch long. Top-down view: ...and side profile:
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Post by tom 🕊 on May 31, 2020 20:00:45 GMT -5
Here's a new (to me) visitor to the garden It may be an immature wheel bug, or it could be the nymph of a leaf-footed bug. I have already picked five leaf-footed bugs off garden peas.
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Post by desertwoman on May 31, 2020 20:14:58 GMT -5
Whoa- you southerners have some mighty interesting insects! Wheelgarden,
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